Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · Small-town market · Ohio

Grocery stores in the Defiance, OH area

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for grocery stores in the Defiance, OH area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 72 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #58 of 506 scored small-town markets
#2 of 28 scored small-town markets based in Ohio

Listings
7
3 chain locations (43%)
Official establishments
5
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$90M
On groceries · $5,870 a household
Spending per listing
$12.9M
38% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
4.6
32% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
38,292
+0.1% since 2020

See the grocery stores around any address in the Defiance area

The site report maps the grocery stores on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Defiance area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

As of September 2026, map listings count 7 grocery stores in the Defiance area. Chain locations make up 43% of them, against 37% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 4.6, 32% below the U.S. rate of 6.8.

Household spending on groceries in the Defiance area comes to about $90M a year: $5,870 per household, 7% below the U.S. average. That is about $12.9M of household spending for each store on map listings, 38% above the U.S. figure of $9.3M. That spending covers all groceries, which grocery stores share with other businesses in the trade.

Official counts show 5 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in the Defiance area in 2023. That is one for every 3,065 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S.

Population estimates show the Defiance area grew 0.1% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Defiance area scores 72 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for grocery stores, ranking #58 of 506 scored small-town markets and #2 of 28 scored small-town markets based in Ohio. That puts it in the top quarter of small-town markets.

How the Defiance area compares

The same measures for Ohio and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all groceries by the grocery stores counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Grocery stores in Defiance, OH area compared with Ohio and the U.S.
MeasureDefiance areaOhioU.S.
Listings per 10k households4.66.16.8
Spending per listing$12.9M$9.8M$9.3M
Households per official establishment3,0652,5692,053
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a−5.7%0.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.1%+0.9%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$5,870$5,967$6,319
Median household income$73,064$71,389$80,734
Groundwork market score7250

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
5
Employees, 2023
182
Annual payroll, 2023
$4.9M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
73 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
10The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
0
Amount
$0

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in the Defiance area, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.

Population and households in the Defiance area

Population, 2025 estimate
38,292+0.1% since 2020
Households
15,327
Median age
40.9
Homes lived in by their owners
79%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
411 sq. mi.
People per square mile
93
Median household income
$73,064+21.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$88,073
Median home value
$163,200
Jobs located here
14,922
Daytime population
36,059Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Defiance area?

These figures cover the whole small-town market. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the grocery stores on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of the Defiance area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Grocery stores across Ohio

Every Ohio market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets in Ohio for grocery stores, numbered among those based in Ohio, with the Defiance area marked.

Top small-town markets in Ohio

Small-town markets in Ohio ranked for grocery stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Wapakoneta, OH7584.2$14.4M−1.2%#41 of 506
2Defiance, OH7274.6$12.9M+0.1%#58 of 506
3Sidney, OH69115.8$10.3M−0.2%#78 of 506
4Bucyrus, OH6752.8$20.1M−0.3%#92 of 506
5Fremont, OH63135.3$10.8M−0.4%#121 of 506
6Coshocton, OH6174.7$11.5M+1.6%#140 of 506
7Zanesville, OH61174.9$11.4M+0.7%#141 of 506
8Findlay, OH61257.9$7.5M+0.1%#152 of 506
9Tiffin, OH6094.0$14.1M−1.0%#154 of 506
10Wilmington, OH60137.8$7.6M+0.6%#159 of 506

Other business types in the Defiance area

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many grocery stores are in the Defiance, OH area?

The Defiance area has 7 grocery stores on map listings as of September 2026. 3 of them (43%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery stores and supermarkets. Official counts show 5 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in 2023.

How much do households in the Defiance, OH area spend on groceries?

About $90M a year, or $5,870 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 7 grocery stores on map listings, it comes to $12.9M per store. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only grocery stores. It is estimated from the incomes of the 15,327 households in the Defiance area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Defiance, OH area compare with the U.S. for grocery stores?

The Defiance area has 4.6 grocery stores per 10,000 households, 32% below the U.S. rate of 6.8. Spending per store is $12.9M, 38% above the U.S. figure of $9.3M. At the national ratio of grocery stores to household spending, the Defiance area would have about 10, against 7 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 3,065 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S.

How fast is the Defiance, OH area growing?

Population estimates put the Defiance area at 38,292 people in 2025, up 0.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 15,327 households. Median household income in the Defiance area is $73,064, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 21.9%, before inflation.

What is the Groundwork market score?

The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The Defiance area scores 72 for grocery stores (upper middle), #58 of 506 scored small-town markets.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Defiance area. It maps the grocery stores on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.

How the score works · Top markets for grocery stores · All 56 business types in the Defiance area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Defiance area?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

The button opens the report at the center of the Defiance area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.